Theresa Perkes

Reflection D
June 17, 2023

I truly enjoyed this set of reading assignments, and the assistance they provide me in becoming a
greater transformational leader. I was not surprised by the intersection point in terms of the
leadership dimensions of task orientation and people orientation. I fall between medium and high
regarding the Shared Leadership Style. I was a little disappointed, as I hoped I would have
scored slightly higher. This, however, has shown me that I still have areas of improvement to
becoming an authentic and effective leader.

I love the people orientation part of leadership. I generally try to recognize my team through
nonfinancial reinforcers by giving them instant recognition for a job well done and positive
feedback when coaching is needed. I am a very supportive leader and I try to have genuine
concern for my employees. I understand that positive reinforcement strengthens and increases
employee performance (Luthans, Fred, et al., 2021, p. 351). I need to implement more positive
reinforcement into my leadership style. I don’t think I publicly recognize the contributions of my
team as much as I should. At my job, we are held accountable for meeting and exceeding
metrics, which causes a little stress when are metrics are not where I would like them to be. I
realize through this assignment, that my stress and negative reinforcement can have a negative
effect on our performance. I do not want my team to feel unsupported or that I do not believe in
their ability to attain the expected goals. I am learning that, as I lead through inspiration and
optimism, my team will inadvertently, perform at a higher level and be happier employees.
Finding ways to empower them will strengthen their confidence and ability to perform better. As
I work towards developing them and giving them power, I will also become a more authentic
leader.

Organizational leaders are moving into an area where they need to be able to multi-task. There
are several hats or ‘faces’ that leaders/managers wear. (Luthans, Fred, et al., 2021, p. 404) One
of the areas or skills that I would like to enquire pertain to the ‘artist’ hat. I am a creative person
by nature, I am emotional and wear my heart on my sleeve, I have been independent since a
young age, but I struggle with the curious (challenging the status quo) portion of this
characteristic. I generally don’t challenge what is being said or taught. I feel that if I were more
proactive and curious to changing the future, this would make me a more authentic leader.

Other skills that I am working towards developing is motivating and influencing others and
building a stronger team. I believe I am a positive influence on my employees as I have high
integrity, am honest, trustworthy, empathetic, disciplined and resilient. However, I struggle with
motivation and finding way to motivate myself and them. These chapters have given me great
insight and ways to work towards developing, motivating, and inspiring my team. As I
strengthen these skills, they will help me develop my team and together we can grow and
become better employees for our organization.

In the ever-changing world of commerce, I think it is important that we continue to learn and
grow our leadership abilities. Understanding the roles of leaders and followers will assist in our
growth and development. As I continue this development journey, I will strive to have peace in
all areas of my life including personal, religious and professional. As I do this, I will develop into
a greater transformational leader.
 Theresa Perkes
Reflection D
June 17, 2023

References

Luthans, Fred, et al. Organizational Behavior: An Evidence-Based Approach. 14th ed.,

Information Age Publishing, Incorporated. pp. 351-404.